In the ever expanding audio and video recording and playing market, it has become popular to miniaturize many of the components and often the devices themselves. For example, portable video (and audio) recorders have become smaller in size and utilize a relatively small tape cassette for recording purposes. Unfortunately, present playback devices, particularly those used in home video systems, are set up to utilize a relatively large cartridge so as to enable long playing through increased tape volume. Similarly, in miniaturized recorders, often it may be desirable to utilize the tape cassette in a tape player/recorder which normally takes only a larger tape cassette.
These different requirements in a device for home use as compared to portable devices, usually requires the use of two different cassettes, i.e., a small and light cassette for a portable device and a long playing cassette for the home device. Accordingly, a need and desire has arisen to allow the use of the smaller cassette in the larger home audio and video device.
In this regard, attempts have been made to provide for such a conversion by adjusting the home video device. However, such structures are very involved, since the mechanics for driving the winding coils of tape cassettes having different axial distances would be very complicated. Alternatively, to compensate for the different axis distance in the different cassette sizes would be to adjust the cassette. For example, a small cassette can be adjustable to that of a standard cassette for a home video device through the use of a cassette as disclosed in my copending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 375,208, filed May 5, 1982, entitled "Tape Cassette", the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
In this application, there is disclosed a tape cassette having its winding elements encompassed in cassette housing parts that are separable longitudinally to change the distance between the winding coils so that smaller cassettes can adjust to the larger axial distance between the wind-up elements of the home video. While this tape cassette has proven satisfactory, it has become desirable to further improve thereon while remaining relatively uncomplicated, and inexpensive.